The Game of Breaking In
by Fleury's Apprentice70
Summary: Jack admitted to trying to break into Santoff Claussen but could never make it past the yetis. 300 years can lead to a lot of failed attempts. This highlights some of Jack's failures. NEW BONUS CHAPTER: One of Jack's "successes".
1. Chapter 1

He came across it by accident really. After years of purposely searching for it during his downtime between winter storms and harassing that Bunnymund character, he had found the staple of the North Pole by _accident_.

"North's workshop." Jack breathed to himself in a puff of foggy air. His eyes were glassed over with amazement as he took in the sheer size of the structure. He couldn't help but question how he had exactly missed something as extravagant as this before. At this point in time though, it didn't matter because here it was and he was finally going to be able to check it out. Maybe talk to North himself or find a present or two.

Calling out for the wind, Jack drifted over and up towards one of the higher spires and darkened rooms. A window was left open carelessly and Jack grinned seeing this as an open invite to come in.

The room was bare. Jack hoped this meant that this part of workshop wasn't tread upon as much, if at all, but still taking precautions, Jack poked his head out the door. Looking both ways, he didn't see a single soul and slipped easily into the hallway.

That soon changed though as he turned a corner and saw several large hairy creatures. Jack went to slyly turn around and go the opposite way but by a loud outburst from one of the creatures, Jack knew he was spotted. All nonchalant attitude left him as he flew down the halls. For something as big as those things, they really were quick. Then again, it didn't help that with about every twist and turn Jack made a few more of them would join the chase.

It was going well. Better than he thought possible. He gave out a victorious shout and swooped down close to the ground only to crash into some elves that had stacked themselves up for cookies. Losing his balance, he tumbled on the ground and ended up with his cloak covering his head.

Jack peaked out from under the worn cloak and saw nothing but the confused elves. Thinking himself lucky he began to get up, only to be yanked up from behind as a yeti held him by both his arms. Craning his neck around, Jack tried to smile at the frowning—was that a frown? He couldn't tell with all that hair—yeti.

"Good game?" Jack offered to lighten the mood. The yeti shook his head.

Sour over his plan being foiled by some mindless elves, Jack used his limited mobility to swing his staff at one of the elves, successfully freezing it as he was escorted out of the shop.

That was the first attempt to break in. The first-as Jack and this yeti would later find out- of many.

* * *

The second time Jack attempted to break into the workshop was just as successful as the first, which wasn't saying very much. He had managed to slip in and had noticed the halls were silent and still. No gargling of the yeti language and the elves were easier to avoid when you weren't preoccupied running away from a yeti that seemed to be five times your size.

Every once and a while Jack would swing a door open hoping to find some toys. For the most part he just found empty rooms like the one he originally entered. A few had broken ice figurines littered across it.

And then there was the room full of yetis. How could Jack forget that one. He swung the door open lazily and went to step in when he saw them and they saw him. The room turned into a cacophony of Yetish and many of them stood up.

The one who stopped him the first time stepped forward and pointed toward the door. He didn't have to do anything though. Jack hated to admit it but he was intimidated.

"I'll… uh. I'll just be going. "

* * *

It was around the fourth or fifth time that Jack decided to get to know the yeti that kept stopping him. Jack had stopped struggling and lounged lazily over the yeti's shoulder where he was held like a sack of potatoes. The creature thought Jack would actually try to escape, which he had good reason to believe so considering Jack had escaped from his grasp a good five times this time.

"So, what's your name anyway?"

All he got was a jumble of sounds as a response. Jack was silent and mulled it over before shaking his head. "Well then, you look like a Phil to me."

The yeti half-heartedly argued the nickname before dumping Jack outside. Before he could be shut out completely Jack showed off a mischievous grin and gave a flourish of a wave. "Nice gettin' to know you Phil! See you soon!"

* * *

It was absolute chaos, even by Jack's standards.

It was a gutsy move, letting the reindeer loose within Santoff Claussen like that just to have a distraction. Especially so close to Christmas as it was. As the deer kicked and bucked around within the shop, Jack had slipped in.

He strolled around, deciding to go into the actual workshop this time seeing as people were too busy trying to collect the reindeer than to apprehend him. His hands in his pockets, he ducked and dodged any creature that was still running wild. At one point he had almost gotten a hoof in the side of the head which wouldn't help him in any way.

Too busy with that, he didn't notice until it was too late that his cloak had gotten caught on a set of antlers.

It wasn't long after that that he felt himself being picked up by the scruff of the neck. At first he wanted to thank whoever saved him from being skewered but then saw it was Phil.

"Surprise?" Jack said sheepishly. The yeti groaned before carrying the boy by his tattered cloak out the door.

* * *

Jack smiled to himself as he looked around. He never would've thought something so simple could be so brilliant. Or actually work with how obvious it was.

No one gave him a second glance as he walked through the yeti-less halls. The elves were too simpleminded to realize that he didn't belong there. That and they were too busy with anything they could stick in their mouths with the hopes to eat it seemed.

It had been so easy this time, that Jack knew his luck had to be up when he had walked into something bulky and furry when he had been walking backwards in awe. His hands patted the hairy wall behind him.

Definitely yeti.

The gargled speech a moment later confirmed it if there was any ever doubt.

Jack turned around with a deer-caught-in-the-headlight smile. "Oh, hey Phil. What's up?"

More gargled speech that Jack assumed meant: _How did you get in this time?_

Jack gave another sheepish grin and a shrug before saying, "You might want to invest on a lock for the front door."

* * *

The North Pole was due for some snow. So it was only right that Jack bring a nice little dusting of snow and frost. But Jack wasn't on the naughty list for nothing—or at least he assumed he was on the naughty list. He hadn't gotten presents in a while—which is why he brought the snowstorm inside. The yetis and elves could use some fun anyway.

Jack was the only one laughing though as he iced the hallways. He was going deeper into the bowels of the shop. He was going to get to his destination this time and—

A frustrated Yetish cry, the sound of shattering ice, and Jack soon found himself face down with his face pressed against the frosted floors. That day Jack learned how heavy a yeti truly was when it slipped and fell on top of you.

Phil was there in a matter of seconds later dragging him out upside down.

* * *

If he couldn't get in with them all _in_ the workshop, then he'd have to bring them out here with him. So while the fire alarm blared and everyone rushed out of the workshop, Jack made his way to it. There was, of course, no fire. But they didn't know that. Well none of them knew except Phil who stood in Jack's path with his large arms crossed in front of him.

"Hey Phil, what are you doing in here? It's not safe to stay in when there's a fire."

The yeti just stared down at him.

"Yeah, you should probably get going. Don't worry though, I'll make sure everything is fine."

Phil pointed for the boy to leave. Saying something along the lines of _Go._

"You guys should probably keep a better eye on those elves. Can't have them starting fires now, can you?"

The yeti said something to what Jack assumed was _What did you do this time?_ while he pushed a pouting Jack Frost along in front of him.

* * *

Another open window? Jack laughed to himself as he the wind lowered him to the opening, sighing as it did so. The Spirit of Winter shook his head, thinking the wind was mocking the inhabitants of the workshop instead of being exasperated at Jack himself. "I know, I know. You'd think they would have learned after the last time."

Just as he was picking up momentum to fly through the hole in the wall, a yeti had walked by the window and saw him. Not just any yeti, but Phil. After a second of surprise at seeing the young spirit, the yeti rolled his eyes and shut the window before walking off.

As Jack ran face first into the sturdy glass made to withstand blizzard conditions, he tumbled into the snow embarrassed.

He wasn't sure what hurt more, his face or his dignity.

* * *

He had seen the sleigh go on a test run while he was creating a storm somewhere in Northern Russia. It was if North wanted Jack to visit his workshop. Seeing yet another invite, Jack shot up into the sky and had grabbed hold of it before it flew through a rift in the sky.

The landing had been a little rough, but worth it. Currently Jack waited for things to calm down before he could crawl out from the undercarriage. It was to be a flawless plan except for the small happenstance that Phil rolled underneath the sleigh with a toolbox to fix the mechanics.

It surprised them both as they stared at each other wordlessly before Phil just closed his eyes and muttered _Out._

* * *

Jack sighed as Phil picked him up by his hoodie and once again dragged him out. "Watch the hood, Phil! I actually like this jacket." He said in good humor. He had stopped struggling and crossed his arms across his chest.

The yeti grunted in acknowledgement.

It was such a routine by now for the two of them that Jack had forgotten his original intent of entering Santoff Claussen. Now it was merely to bide his time with a game of chase.

As Jack was once again thrown into a snow bank, he got back up and dusted himself off before dramatically bowing to Phil with a mischievous grin. "I'll see you again soon then, Phil."

The yeti rolled his eyes and waved the boy off knowing that Jack would be back. The only question was, how soon was soon?


	2. Bonus Chapter

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

Jack couldn't help but feel satisfied as he lazily made it down from the upper corridors of Santoff Claussen, away from his quarters and towards the hustle and bustle of the workshop itself. Swinging his staff from his shoulder, he tapped the back of several elves that had clearly just escaped the kitchen seeing as they left a trail of cookies behind them. They were frozen in their tracks now, bringing a smile to Jack's face as he continued on his way.

North didn't know he was here yet. Or at least, Jack assumed he didn't as there were no calls of _Jack_ resonating throughout the workshop just yet—though the trail of frozen elves and frost patches might tip him off soon enough. Besides, it wasn't as if Jack had actually entered through the front door even though he was fully allowed to at this point in time. Where was the fun in entering that way when Jack just as easily jumped through one of the neglected open windows and surprise everyone with his presence just as winter does to everyone?

Speaking of fun, it was too quiet in the workshop today. It was early on in the season of toy making so he could risk sparking a bit of fun for all the yetis and elves. Surely, Jack thought, North wouldn't mind. After all, North had been the one to extend the invitation of Jack treating Santoff Claussen as a home and any home of Jack's needed a bit of snow, ice, and most of all fun. And really, he'd been here for several hours now, even snuck in a small nap in the room he was allowed to call his. Winter liked to sneak up on people, but at some point, it had to make itself known.

So calling upon the wind that burst through the nearest window, he flew up towards the rafters before plummeting down towards the lower levels and into the workshop production line itself. Snow trails flurried in his wake and frost began to spread along railings and walls that he brushed against. An obnoxious outburst from the boy finally alerted every one of his arrival at the North Pole as the yetis looked up and groaned, knowing they would have a mess to clean up shortly.

Jack laughed as he flipped and twisted between yetis and toys. His staff trailed against surfaces leaving ice patches that the creatures would slip and fall on. The winter spirit grinned as his eyes zeroed in on a familiar form and went to teasingly rush by the yeti with a pleasant "Hey Phil!" The exchange would have worked quite nicely except for the part where he misjudged the distance needed to avoid Phil's reach, seeing as the yeti reached out and yanked the boy out of the wind's grasp by his hood.

The boy grinned and waved. "Oh, hey Phil. How've you been?"

Phil made a frustrated noise as he stared up at nothing—or he could have been staring at the still falling snow, Jack considered a moment later. "So…" Jack drawled as he looked around and tugged at the neckline of his hoodie. "Plan on letting me down anytime soon?"

The yeti looked contemplative. This was, after all, the boy who had always managed to slip in and play games while wreaking havoc on the workshop he was to protect. This was the boy who had given him a smug grin when he had bumped into him once he had finally made it into the actual workshop himself. The worst part was that Phil could only pound a fist threateningly into his hand as the spirit was actually _allowed_ and _escorted_ into the place by North himself. And when Phil had found out the boy was a new Guardian with permission to enter the building any time, let alone call it _home_ astounded the yeti.

It wasn't that he hated Jack. Jack had humored him over the years. It was more or less that Phil prided himself on keeping the spirit out of his workshop though he had a deep suspicion that Jack hadn't even cared about entering the shop after a while. It was all a game, a game that Phil didn't want to end just yet.

With alarm Jack realized that the yeti wasn't planning on letting him go just yet. "Hey now, Phil! If this is about the ice and frost and all that—I'll—I'll clean it up!" Jack cried out, struggling inside his hoodie as the yeti began walking off with him. Walking off, that is, in the complete opposite direction of North's workshop, the meeting room, or even Jack's personal room.

"_Phil_!" Jack pleaded. He couldn't slip out of his hoodie and he had a suspicion they were heading towards the front door. He had only been kicked out of it a hundred or so times. "I'm allowed in here now! You know that! Guardian and all that fun stuff!"

Phil rumbled with laughter and Jack twisted around and crossed his arms like so many times before. He narrowed his eyes at the yeti. "You're doing this on purpose, aren't you."

He thought he saw the yeti smile and he sighed in response before spinning around correctly. He lowered his staff and hit a pillar with it. It instantly froze. "I'm not cleaning that up, either." Jack said with a pout the yeti couldn't see.

Soon enough he recognized the front door and sighed.

"This isn't funny, Phil. I just wanted to visit North."

The yeti replied with a mixture of Yetish and laughter before opening the door with the other hand and dropping Jack on his feet. Patting the boy on the back he closed the door.

"I can just get right back in, Phil!" Jack yelled through the heavy door and went to open it but then head a heavy click and bolt sliding across. Well, he had advised the creature to invest in a lock. That one lock didn't really have to stop the boy. He could have slid in through his room's window which was nearly always open. He could have found any window really or knocked on one in the room that North currently occupied.

But he didn't.

Instead the winter spirit settled down for the wait to come until either Phil or North came to let him in. Because before Phil had closed the door, Jack had seen the good humored grin across the creature's face. These actions weren't against him. No, they were just the next play in their long played out game that would never end. It was a part of their odd friendship that had somehow formed over the years.

So Jack sat outside the door, playing his part of the game with his own good humored grin.

* * *

**So here was a bonus chapter. When I wrote the original one-shot I was thinking about writing about after Jack was allowed in the workshop and when I received interest in that, I figured I'd include that as a bonus. I like to think that they would still continue the game because how boring would it be if Jack could get in there with no problem after all that trouble?**

**And so there's the end of this. Thank you for the response to this idea!**


End file.
